I founded the "Bragging Cult" in Naruto.

Chapter 236 The traits that seem to indicate genius are often also symptoms.

Unlike Usugi, who concealed himself throughout his defection, Takezuki encountered a wealthy merchant caravan shortly after landing in the Land of Fire.

When the caravan owner heard that he was a ninja by trade, he didn't suspect anything and hired him as a guard for the caravan.

Zhu Yue was happy to accept this arrangement, since he wasn't good at stealth and didn't know how to obtain the currency of the Land of Fire.

Although he was known as a genius since childhood, Zhu Yue knew that he could not use the currency he brought from the Land of Water at will, and it was best not to use even a single tael.

The only ways he could think of to quickly earn the Fire Kingdom's currency, besides burning, killing, and looting, were the bounties from the gold exchange and private commissions from caravans.

Therefore, he accepted the caravan's invitation without hesitation, disguised himself as a ninja from a family in the Land of Fire, and followed the caravan all the way to the heart of the Land of Fire.

He didn't have a particular destination in mind. Unlike Usugi's voluntary defection, Takezuki had no choice but to leave the Land of Water, after all, he possessed something that was not allowed to exist.

In recent years, the village has become increasingly strict in its control over ninjas with bloodline limits. Many ninjas, clans, or ninja families with bloodline limits have even fought against the mainstream factions of Kirigakure.

Without exception, the village won every victory, and with each victory, the suppression of ninjas with bloodline limits became increasingly severe.

Zhu Yue didn't know when it started, but he, as a "hybrid", was also being targeted. As a Jonin of the village, he should have had a lot of autonomy, but he was being monitored all the time.

Whether it's their colleagues, their subordinates, or even their friends, they all seem to have become their monitors.

Until recently, the village took action against him.

Stimulated by her mother's blood, Zhu Yue awakened the talent inherited from her maternal clan. The familiar phrase "go back to cooperate with the investigation" completely transformed into "apprehend! Capture! Kill!"

Using the somewhat mutated Corpse Bone Vein, Zhu Yue successfully escaped the village and fled overseas. After wandering around, he stole a fishing boat near the Land of Whirlpools, which finally gave him a moment to catch his breath after he was exhausted.

Subsequently, with the help of the Land of Whirlpools, he arrived in the Land of Fire. After many days of peace, Takezuki began to forget his pain and planned to start a new life. However, the first step proved difficult for him.

where to go?

Before figuring out the problem, Zhu Yue wanted to stay with the caravan, since the people there were all very nice.

"Lord Takezuki, there's a hot spring inn in the town where we're next. Would you like to try it out?"

A well-dressed middle-aged man winked at Zhu Yue. Zhu Yue didn't hide her name; after all, it was quite common and didn't have any regional connotations, so he didn't want to change it.

Hearing the man's words, Zhu Yue frowned and thought for a moment before saying, "I have no problem with that, but is the master willing? After all, I won't be able to look after these goods while I'm at the hot spring inn."

Upon hearing this, the man slapped his forehead and said, "I'll go ask the master first. Please wait a moment, Lady Zhuyue."

As he spoke, the man quickened his pace and ran ahead. But when he got permission from his master to return and share the good news, he found that Zhu Yue was gone.

Several kilometers away, Zhu Yue strolled along, slapped her side impatiently, and said, "Speak up, don't touch me!"

Minato, who had withdrawn his hand, froze for a second, not even knowing what Taketsuki meant. This person is so calm!

"Did the host agree?"

Not hearing a reply, Zhu Yue asked in dissatisfaction, then looked up, intending to see the expression on the face of the person who had asked her out. But when she looked up, she found herself standing in front of a towering tree.

"Duang~"

Zhu Yue crashed headfirst into it, causing no harm, but it made her realize that her surroundings seemed different.

He quickly stepped back to get a wider view, looking around, only to find that he seemed to be no longer in the caravan. But how long had it been? How could he have strayed so far from the group?!

And why didn't anyone remind him? Did they want to isolate him and not take him to the hot spring inn?!

"Takezuki, a Jonin from Kirigakure."

An unfamiliar voice reached Zhu Yue's ears. He looked around in a panic and asked, "Who?!"

A figure appeared in the forest. Tatsuma, wearing a beige trench coat, calmly said, "Takezuki has been classified as an S-rank rogue ninja by Kirigakure for the crimes of harming his colleagues and harboring rogue ninjas."

They fled to the vicinity of the Land of Whirlpools, murdering seven fishermen from the Land of Fire and stealing a fishing boat and two sets of clothes.

Upon hearing this stranger recount his crimes, Zhu Yue was initially quite agitated, but then became even more agitated. How could picking up two sets of clothes that fit him be considered a crime?!

After saying that, Tatsuma's tone became curious, and he asked, "Have you awakened your bloodline limit?"

Upon hearing this, Takezuki's excited expression darkened, and he looked at Tatsuma warily. Tatsuma observed Takezuki and found that his muscles and joints were relaxed, but he gave the impression of a feline that was about to crouch down.

Zhu Yue did not answer. After a three-second silence, Chen Ma made a hand gesture. In an instant, a shadow appeared beside Zhu Yue. Zhu Yue's relaxed body almost instinctively dodged and raised her arm to counterattack.

"Bang!"

Suddenly, a bone spur shot out from Zhu Yue's palm, piercing the heart of the newcomer, who then vanished into a wisp of smoke.

A muffled groan came from beside Tatsuma, and then Minato, wearing an owl mask, appeared, looking at Taketsuki with a serious expression. Tatsuma's eyes narrowed slightly, but he still said:

"Shadow clones are still too clumsy."

If it had been Minato's true form that used the Flying Thunder God Technique to teleport there, the time left for Takezuki would have been even shorter. Furthermore, even if Takezuki counterattacked, Minato's quick thinking would have allowed him to quickly devise a plan to evade.

Minato nodded, but also said, "However, his speed, or rather his physical skills, are truly not to be underestimated."

Zhu Yue looked at the two people in front of him, and slowly grasped the bone spur in his left palm with his right hand. He pulled the bone spur out directly, drawing out some blood. However, his wound healed quickly and did not cause much damage.

Seeing this, Chenma analyzed: "Compared to the Corpse Bone Pulse ability in the intelligence, his Corpse Bone Pulse is like an incomplete version. The proliferating bone tissue cannot detach smoothly, which will cause a certain amount of blood loss."

However, it might reduce the bloodstain disease that is usually present in ninjas with the Shikotsumyaku bloodline limit. But judging from the time when he was most likely to awaken his bloodline limit ability, it's possible that he's currently affected by the bloodstain disease.

The two were plotting in hushed tones, which made Zhu Yue's face grow increasingly grim. He glanced at the spot where the shadow clone of Minato had just appeared, and looked somewhat puzzled.

His eyesight was excellent; he could even clearly see the flight trajectory of the ninja tools when they were thrown. However, he did not see how Minato appeared.

Tatsuma then asked in a low voice, "Is everything alright?"

Zhu Yue's physical skills and physique seem to surpass Minato's by a considerable margin, which surprised Tatsuma. However, it is likely that this is due to the enhancement of his physique brought about by the awakening of his bloodline limit.

It's also possible that Takezuki was originally a ninja specializing in taijutsu, and thus honed his skills in this area to a high degree, but this possibility is relatively low.

After all, the information Tatsuma had about Takezuki was based on a comprehensive assessment of his past performance. Compared to the information, Takezuki's physique was obviously much stronger. It was impossible for Takezuki to make such great progress in such a short time through regular training.

If it were the Takezuki from the intelligence report, Tatsuma could let Minato "play" with it without worry, but the current Takezuki is a bit tricky even for him.

Knowing that his speed is inferior to Minato's, and Minato's speed is inferior to Takezuki's, if he switches to Tatsuma, Tatsuma's speed will be at a complete disadvantage. He will try to win in other ways, but it will be tricky.

Minato shook his head and said, "It's okay, I'll just become faster."

Without further hesitation, he neither attempted to use Shadow Clone nor Flying Thunder God Technique, but instead instantly rushed towards Takezuki.

Zhu Yue swung the bone spike in her right hand. If the two of them were moving at the same speed, Minato would most likely have crashed into the bone spike. But at that moment, Minato suddenly changed direction and dodged the bone spike that was right in front of him.

At the same time, he reached out with his right hand and touched Zhu Yue's right hand before separating. Minato also instantly left, forming hand seals at the same time.

"The talisman explodes!"

On Zhu Yue's hands, there was an explosive tag that had somehow gotten on them. As the spell for the explosive tag was activated, flames burst out from it.

Minato stared intently at the scene within the flames, praying that Takezuki would be injured by the explosive tags. This would mean that Takezuki's physique wasn't as strong as a monster's, and that she would still be able to break through his defenses and get injured if hit.

But as the firelight and smoke dissipated, Minato's gaze grew increasingly solemn. He saw that Takezuki's clothes were tattered, but bone spurs had grown from every joint in her body, encasing her like armor.

When Zhu Yue looked up again, his facial features were different from what he had just seen. His original honest and simple appearance had disappeared, and he had become a face with a very distinctive look.

Like a red mole above her eyebrow, her eyes were red and seemed to be severely allergic, and the exposed skin was paler than before. This was what Zhu Yue looked like after removing her disguise.

But these weren't the main points in Minato's eyes. The main point was that after the explosive tags exploded, the bones wrapped around Takezuki seemed to be undamaged.

"Is this what allowed you to escape from Kirigakure?"

Minato murmured, but still gripped a kunai in his hand and instantly rushed towards Takezuki.

"Clang~"

The kunai struck Taketsuki's exoskeleton, and Minato felt a numbness in his arm. His expression under the mask turned grim as he saw Taketsuki smile.

Zhu Yue reached out and grabbed at Minato, the bone spurs attached to his arm also slightly raised, like the tip of a long spear, and together they pierced towards Minato.

Minato's first reaction was to use the Flying Thunder God Technique to leave, which would have been the best course of action. However, he immediately rejected the idea, because the mystique of the Flying Thunder God Technique needed to be maintained until he was certain that he could defeat the enemy.

Retreating continuously to dodge Takezuki's relentless attacks, Minato's figure appeared somewhat disheveled. Takezuki's speed was no less than his, and due to the agility of the bone spikes, Minato's every dodge was extremely wide and exaggerated.

This relentless attack left Minato completely unable to break free and use his ninjutsu to test its effectiveness.

"Rip~"

Takezuki's bone spikes grazed Minato's collar, piercing and completely tearing open the collar with its embedded metal shield. However, Minato was secretly delighted because the clothes slightly slowed Takezuki's speed, and he quickly grabbed one of Takezuki's bone spikes.

A spinning back kick landed on Takezuki's ribs, and instantly, a bloody bone spur was pulled out by Minato. Takezuki groaned and his speed dropped sharply, while Minato took the opportunity to get away and began to play with the bone spur in his hand.

It is unusually hard, no wonder even kunai cannot damage it, but the connection point is unstable and it has no sharp edge.

Water Gate stopped and looked at Takezuki, whose exoskeleton armor had fully grown back. He knew how to deal with her.

(End of this chapter)